Apple Aiming to Make iPad More Mac-Like With iPadOS 16 Multitasking Changes

[George Dawes]

At last some positive news on iPad OS

Let’s get the software to match the powerful hardware !

 

[ballyhoo]

Apple needs to go back to the Jobs playbook. Too many iPad models. It’s confusing to the customer. Overheard this in an Apple store last month and I agree! If a new MacBook or the like doesn’t come out soon, Ima gonna blow my top. Bought a new iPad Pro, keyboard and pen. Less than 2 weeks later, the security update made it all completely unusable. Struggled along for another couple of weeks. Returned all to the Apple store @41 days. Why did they allow that? Because they knew. Thankfully they still have great customer service…

 

[aibo82]

I think Apple ready should start splitting the OS one for the iPad and one for iPad Pro!

The sheer amount of features for the sake of features in iPad is has completely destroyed the ease of use for my parents! It’s not intuitive and multi tasking pop ups are a nightmare to get rid of in safari.

For a child or elderly person or someone who wants the basics I think the standard iPad should come with how the OS used to be years ago just simple!

If they want a pro device then keep the features of multi tasking windows and a 100 options to that, not allow some of the complexity to fall over to the standard iPad or the Air.

 

[Stella]

Apple can offer it as an optional, at least. Imagine, When you can just take your iPad and perform all the tasks as you would on a Mac (especially if you are traveling) You don't really have to carry your Macbook around. It all comes down to the functionality, making it seamless, the eco-system.

That situation for me would involve removing the walled garden, so applications can be installed from any source. The apps I need aren't ( and probably cannot be modified so they would be available ) on the AppStore.

So, for many people, like myself, iPad would still be a no-go. A Mac still required. iPad would still be hobbled.

 

[bcortens]

Anything. Multitasking has gone from bad to worse with every version since the simple vertical-scrolling side app menu. It really gives the impression that no one at Apple actually uses an iPad or has any idea how anyone would. Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse, they add a bunch MORE random popup clutter, AND remove the ability to turn this dysfunctional clusterbang off in the current release. Outrageously terrible and I sincerely hope everyone associated with the design choices that led to this travesty has been sacked.

I get the impression you don't use an iPad much - the way you can drag and manipulate windows in modern iOS is both flexible yet structured. If you don't want to use the new multitasking system you can simply ignore it. The only things that popup kind of randomly is the quick notes thing, and I agree that should be disabled if the user wants to (I actually haven't yet tested to see if you can turn this off).

 

[bcortens]

I think Apple ready should start splitting the OS one for the iPad and one for iPad Pro!

The sheer amount of features for the sake of features in iPad is has completely destroyed the ease of use for my parents! It’s not intuitive and multi tasking pop ups are a nightmare to get rid of in safari.

For a child or elderly person or someone who wants the basics I think the standard iPad should come with how the OS used to be years ago just simple!

If they want a pro device then keep the features of multi tasking windows and a 100 options to that, not allow some of the complexity to fall over to the standard iPad or the Air.

No, if you want a Mac, buy a Mac.
Multitasking resizable floating windows, on a 9-13" device don't make sense. They aren't even a great UX on macOS (hence why I use the magnet utility to size my windows they don't overlap).

Pro multitasking doesn't mean floating resizable windows, this solves nothing... the problems with the iPad and pro features are (in no particular order):

• Interapp communication to enable things like plugins and more powerful extensions with embedded custom UI
• Persistent background activity to allow apps to actually run in the background (without weird hacks)
• Lower level access to system features
• Swap/virtual memory to allow apps that need more than 4GB of memory to operate (I know the latest iPad Pros have 8GB but sooo many still only have 4GB).
• More powerful apps: Pages on iPad is worse than iPad for Mac, Xcode on the iPad so we can build more powerful apps, VSCode on iPad...
• Proper USB port access

There are probably more things I'm missing but so many people have been distracted by windowing as this holy grail of multitasking when it is nothing... it is a shiny distraction

If we get resizable floating windows it won't solve any of the above problems, the iPad will remain limited to its current use cases and no one who claims that multi-tasking is the problem are still not going to use an iPad...

 

[svish]

Really looking forward to seeing the changes on iPadOS this year. Ability to resize windows will be a good addition. At least hoping for a calculator and weather app from Apple.

 

[yakapo]

If they release a surface type tablet, I’ll buy. I already have a m1 MacBook Air

 

[xXRainKingXx]

Multitasking (two full screen apps side by side) should be as simple as opening the app switcher and dragging one app onto another. That's how it works on macOS using Launchpad.

 

[Steve121178]

Apple wants to make the iPad behave more like a laptop than a smartphone and plans to implement changes in iPadOS 16 to further that goal, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

iPadOS 16 will feature a redesigned multitasking interface that makes it easier to swap between tasks and see which apps are open, plus it will allow users to resize windows. Apple plans to implement new ways for users to deal with multiple apps at once, in what sounds like a much more Mac-like multitasking experience.

The revamped iPad experience will be one of the biggest upgrades announced at WWDC, according to Gurman.

Apple's iPad Pro models are as powerful as its Macs as they use the same M1 chip, but the software experience has always lagged behind and prevented the tablet from being used in the same way as a laptop or desktop machine.

The new iPadOS 16 experience will premiere on Monday, June 6, with Apple previewing the software for developers. Developers will get beta access that same day, and Apple will refine the iPadOS 16 software over the course of several months before launching it in the fall alongside iOS 16.

Article Link: Apple Aiming to Make iPad More Mac-Like With iPadOS 16 Multitasking Changes

I'll believe it when I see it.

 

[BeatCrazy]

Especially when people are spending more $$ on an iPad Pro with keyboard case than they would on a base model MBA.
Why use and iPad and wish it was a Mac? Just don’t buy an iPad.

Which Macs have 5G/cellular connectivity? Which Macs can easily be repositioned for media consumption if I'm sitting in a chair, laying on a couch or riding in the back of a car? With a rugged case, they're significantly more durable than a Mac, especially if you need to use them outside, etc.

 

[Razorpit]

Don’t know why everyone wants a tablet to be a Mac so much. Steve Jobs said himself during the iPads introduction that the iPad is a “third category device between a laptop and a smartphone”.

Just buy a Mac if you want a Mac, otherwise you’ll never be satisfied because you’ll just want them to add something else to make it like a Mac, then another thing, then another… etc. You are forever chasing after something to be something that it was never intended to be.

It's been a few years. Don't you think it's about time to move a little bit away from the phone functionality of the OS and more towards the M1 capability?

Let me guess... Mx iPads only. So for most people, go buy another iPad if you want this.

I'd be up for Pro models only. Let the standard iPads have the gimped iPhone OS that some here think is enough.

Terrible idea. More illusion. Even the largest iPad is still too small for a windowed experience, and everything smaller than the 12.9" is way too small for it.

You ever check this site out? Pretty amazing stuff in a 13" package. https://www.apple.com/shop/buy-mac/macbook-air
{That's what she said.}

I agree regarding automatically switching between modes. 2-in-1 ChromeOS devices do that and it drives me nuts. Especially when using a tablet with a detachable keyboard... if the connection is loose, then the screen switches to tablet mode without any way to override it.

So if there was a switch that overrode that you would be ok with it?

I’d like to see an override for apps that only display in “Portrait” mode, to display in a windowed-down Landscape mode (lookin’ at you Linksys). It’s a PITA if you use a Smart Keyboard.

YES!!! There are several apps I have to use that are portrait only. Linksys is one of them. Apple should boot any iPad app that doesn't support landscape by now.

You can pinch to make it bigger and smaller. It's only between two sizes though. I'm taking about quick note windows that you can drag in from the corner of the screen. https://allthings.how/how-to-take-a-quick-note-on-ipad/#:~:text=To move it aside, drag,inward to make it smaller.
I'm guessing you have more size options on the 12.9 inch iPad.

The floating quick notes widget on the iPad can be resized by using a pinch out/in. There are only two sizes however.

Thanks. Completely forgot about that functionality. I apparently used once because there is a not in there that's about 9-10 months old. 😄

 

[bcortens]

Multitasking (two full screen apps side by side) should be able as simple as opening the app switcher and dragging one app onto another. That's how it works on macOS using Launchpad.

That’s how it works on iPad OS right now… again people don’t use iPad OS and then complain about it…
iPadOS even does this better… on macOS I can’t invoke the dock from fullscreen or split views, I also cannot drag items out of split screen and into fullscreen on the Mac (I can on iPadOS), I cannot drag to replace an existing fullscreen split view app on macOS (I can on iPad OS)… iPad OS multitasking is good now, but years of it being bad have given everyone a bad impression of it.

 

[bcortens]

It's been a few years. Don't you think it's about time to move a little bit away from the phone functionality of the OS and more towards the M1 capability?

I agree but windowing isn’t the answer (see my previous posts about system features like background tasks, inter app communication, and more).

You ever check this site out? Pretty amazing stuff in a 13" package. https://www.apple.com/shop/buy-mac/macbook-air
{That's what she said.}

MacBook Air doesn’t need to support fat fingers for resizing and the general UI elements are bigger on iPads so I think you’d need at least 15” before floating resizable windows would be viable… (I still don’t want them)

YES!!! There are several apps I have to use that are portrait only. Linksys is one of them. Apple should boot any iPad app that doesn't support landscape by now.

This! I also think all iPad OS apps that aren’t games need to support split view… why doesn’t settings for example?

 

[xXRainKingXx]

That’s how it works on iPad OS right now… again people don’t use iPad OS and then complain about it…
iPadOS even does this better… on macOS I can’t invoke the dock from fullscreen or split views, I also cannot drag items out of split screen and into fullscreen on the Mac (I can on iPadOS), I cannot drag to replace an existing fullscreen split view app on macOS (I can on iPad OS)… iPad OS multitasking is good now, but years of it being bad have given everyone a bad impression of it.

Fair enough. My iPad is still on iOS 14, so I was just going off that experience. I guess they improved multitasking in iOS 15.

 

[startergo]

Don’t know why everyone wants a tablet to be a Mac so much. Steve Jobs said himself during the iPads introduction that the iPad is a “third category device between a laptop and a smartphone”.

Just buy a Mac if you want a Mac, otherwise you’ll never be satisfied because you’ll just want them to add something else to make it like a Mac, then another thing, then another… etc. You are forever chasing after something to be something that it was never intended to be.

Yea, but when it is more expensive than the MacBookPro there better be a reason for this...
Otherwise it is just an expensive toy.

 

[patseguin]

I was hoping for the macOS-like experience when it's attached to the smart keyboard with trackpad but something tells me Apple won't do that for some reason.

 

[Horizon Man]

Which Macs have 5G/cellular connectivity? Which Macs can easily be repositioned for media consumption if I'm sitting in a chair, laying on a couch or riding in the back of a car? With a rugged case, they're significantly more durable than a Mac, especially if you need to use them outside, etc.

Yes exactly this, the form factor, and durability are exactly what make the iPad the most used device of my Apple devices family. That's in spite of the constant frictions I experience with it.

I keep see people saying "if you want a Mac buy a Mac" I've got two, it changes nothing.

 

[Razorpit]

I agree but windowing isn’t the answer (see my previous posts about system features like background tasks, inter app communication, and more).

MacBook Air doesn’t need to support fat fingers for resizing and the general UI elements are bigger on iPads so I think you’d need at least 15” before floating resizable windows would be viable… (I still don’t want them)

This! I also think all iPad OS apps that aren’t games need to support split view… why doesn’t settings for example?

I agree with much of what you have said regarding the background processes and inter-communication between the apps. That is what is really needed. You had one or two things I didn't agree with and to be honest they were minor and I can't remember what they are at the moment. Not worth digging back through.

Overall I think you are on the right track, I do think Apple engineers need to figure out a way to do what you are saying, but I also think they can also figure out a way to make better use of screen real estate. Not sure I want completely resizing windows as on the Mac, but the options we have now are extremely limiting. What are the solutions? I don't know, I have my own issues to solve at work to worry about how Apple should address theirs, but I would like something a little bit more "pro" on my M1 iPad Pro. 😉

 

[boston04and07]

One thing I don’t think I’ve seen mentioned in a while is universal control between two iPads (with no Mac involved). It’d be awesome if the keyboard and trackpad connected to one iPad could be used between both. I’d use that a lot when travelling. Hope that’s one of the rumored additions.

 

[patseguin]

That’s not gonna make the iPad a pro device most people don’t need more than than 2 apps open

I beg to differ. I need multiple apps open ALL the time.

 

[darngooddesign]

I beg to differ. I need multiple apps open ALL the time.

Unless Apple fixes background tasks, the apps are going to suspend after a couple of minutes which means they will be visible, but not open and running.

 

[smulji]

Ala Samsung DeX then?

That's exactly how I understand it.

 

[smulji]

GoodNotes and Notability for Mac are crippled compared to iPad versions. OneNote for iPad, even with keyboard and mouse, is crippled compared to Mac version. Using these applications between iPad and Mac is not a seamless experience due to features missing on one platform or the other. If having a common OS will force developers to make their applications consistent across platforms, then it is worth considering.

This is where I think MS has done it right with Windows 11. It scales well from tablet up to desktop. So a modern Windows app will work well across all form factors.

 

[smulji]

I got a feeling, this is the year.?

I've lost that lovin feeling